Transcript of "Branding And Compensation Strategy by Dannielle Blumenthal"

2.
Assumption:
Brands Produce Value Out Of "Nothing"
• Generics are often just as good.
• External marketing activities create the
illusion of a premium product.
• The illusion is self-sustaining after the
initial investment.

4.
Market Logic:
Divest Of Employees (Automate)
• “Employees are overhead.”
• “Employees are replaceable.”
• “Employees need us more than we need
them.”
• “Pay them as little as possible and trust
them even less.”

5.
Brand Logic: Invest In Employees
• The cost of labor is an investment in brand
equity.
• Employees drive goodwill, reputation,
preference, irrational loyalty.
• Align compensation with the level of
contribution to the brand.

6.
Sounds Harsh, But It’s Simple
• Exploited employees desert and destroy
your brand: Compensate them sufficiently
that they stay and continue adding value.
• Non-contributors kill the brand from the
inside: Remove them from the
organization.

8.
Minimize The Pay & Prestige Gap
• What message does it send when the
people who actually serve the customer
are paid minimum wage?
• Why are executives distant from the action
paid so much more, and treated so
lavishly?
• Is there a business benefit here, or is the
arrangement irrational?

9.
It’s About Being Smart, Not “Nice”
• Exploited employees can cause the brand
great harm.
• They don’t engage at work, they are
undermining, they drag others down.
• They badmouth the organization.
• They join competitors.
• Better: Compensate & retain good
employees throughout the lifetime of the
relationship, and afterward.